Pump or not?

[mjwr]

I have reasonable but not ideal control over my diabetes averaging between 2.8-20 on a daily basis! It's been suggested that I try a pump to improve it! Just wanting to know the pros and cons from a real life point of view instead of a health care professional...
Is it worth it or is it more hassle than 5× a day injections?

[Lalala14690]

I have type one diabetes and an insulin pump. Have had diabetes since the age of ten and am 20 now. I've been on the pump for about 4 years. I can honestly say I love being on the pump. It's so much more convenient, and my diabetes control is much better. Even when I wasn't doing bgls as much as I should have and was taking poor care of my diabetes as a teen it kept my levels much more stable then they ever were on needles.  Would recommend it to anyone with type one who is able to program it. (it's quite easy and the diabetes education team walks you through it). The needles need to be done or changed every 2-3 days, and are generally painless after insertion.  I find sometimes the more bulky plastic lines can cause a bit of skin irritation however, but is resolved by doing an early set change. Other inconvenience is if you're a female, dresses can be more of a challenge with the pump.  Overall in my case the benefits far outweigh the inconveniences and I'm very happy with this method of controlling my diabetes.

[Super_sally888]

Hi.  We agree not medical professionals here.  This is patient to patient support.  That is  quite a big daily swing in sugars. Some people do great on the pump and  love it.  Others not so much.  For me it's not an option due to cost, i don't want to be attached to a device, and i can't bear the thought of so much medical waste. Further i can get good blood sugar on mdi with the right approach.

I highly suggest you look into basal-bolus to testing to be sure your insulin doses are correct.  Timing of bolus dose prior to eating can help with post eating highs and lows.  Low carb eating can also help greatly with reducing insulin dose and reducing those swings.  With very low carb eating and insulin i can mostly keep my sugars in range of 70 - 110 range. Monitor closely as you eat low carb as your insulin requirements may drop dramatically.

Dr richard bernstein book diabetes solutions, presents his teachings on low carb and diabetes management.  You can find him on utube at bernstein diabetes university, or look up type 1 grit.

Other useful books are Using Insulin,  and Think Like a Pancreas.

Hope this helps.